"Traditional/ Conservative" to "Progressive/ Woke" Continuum

[Cornemuse]

I am very interested in your thoughts about how some of these boarding schools compare when it comes to the "Trad - Progressive" scale. (Please don't take offence with the choice of words I have chosen; I know some people hate the word "woke" or take umbrage at the term "conservative," etc)

I am trying to get a sense of how schools compare on the conservative - liberal continuum. What do you think?

Brighton College
Charterhouse
Cheltenham Ladies College
Cheltenham College
Gresham
Harrow
Malvern College
Marlborough
Oundle
Rugby
Radley
Sevenoaks
St. Edwards "Teddies"
St. Paul's School
Stowe
Tonbridge
Wellington College
Westminster
Winchester
Wycombe Abbey School
etc...

Why? Sounds like lazy journalism or school research.
Tell us more about why you’re interested? What aspect of boarding in particular?

Didn’t you have a thread on this subject a month or two ago?

The very idea of labelling a school ‘woke’ is offensive to me. What do you mean by it, anyway? Are you hoping to find a school with no Black pupils, perhaps? Or one where they don’t allow books in the library written after the 19th century, or by people not born in the Home Counties?

Away with you and your nonsense!

What’s the point of jumping on the very worst interpretation of OP’s question, almost 100% certain to be incorrect, when she’s already made clear she isn’t trying to antagonise anyone, isn’t looking for an argument over terms, and has given two other words (progressive, liberal) to describe the general idea she’s getting at and appease people who might take issue with one or another?

Presumably the ideological ethos of the school, given that’s the aspect she asked about.

But why???

The job of any decent school is to prepare its pupils to live mindfully and fulfil their potential in the world we live in. To do their best, and encourage and enable other human beings to do their best, too.

Where the jeff do you put those aims on a list from conservative to liberal? It’s so unrealistic. Do you know how many little Eton boys, zipping around in tailcoats, are on 100% bursaries, from single parent homes? What, exactly, are you hoping to judge?

"The very idea of labelling a school ‘woke’ is offensive to me." Why doesn't that surprise me?

"Away with you and your nonsense!" Are you a moderator? If not, please refrain from telling posters that their questions are nonsense and informing them that they must leave.

Close family attend St. Swithun’s; flexi boarding
i find the school has a strong FB/Insta presence.
Pets in the boarding house. Weird report cards though.
Nothing to compare it to. The child is very happy there.

Maybe if you said what you were looking for ppl could help with pros and cons of the schools?

OK, why? Well, why are any of us on MN debating things that won't change the world on a Weds afternoon. If you are choosing a school it might be very important.

The job of any decent school is to prepare its pupils to live mindfully and fulfil their potential in the world we live in. To do their best, and encourage and enable other human beings to do their best, too.

That's a fine school ethos. But not every school is the same. It's hardly an impossible task to try to roughly identify different ideological commitments, especially when many schools are explicit about them. Are these three schools the same ethos? (The first one rejects your initial framing that its job is to prepare its pupils for the world we live in. That's only half the task).

"We are committed to educating young people for this world and the next, and so central to our mission is the religious and Benedictine ethos."

"Make the children meet with triumph and defeat. [...] Free the sons of the wealthy and powerful from the enervating sense of privilege”

“to make education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future”

Thank you. Well, recently someone posted a thread asking about the difference between Harrow and Brighton College. https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/boarding-school/5514353-brighton-college-vs-harrow. It received many responses. My response included the point that Harrow is slightly more "traditional" while Brighton is more "progressive." Then, a later poster responded that Brighton is "extremely progressive/uber liberal/woke (delete as appropriate)"

That thread made me consider where various schools fall on this continuum. Clearly, I am not the only parent who notes the difference in different schools. And since this is a boarding school thread, I thought I would ask specifically about Boarding Schools. If some of you have not noticed any difference among the schools in this regard, that's fine. But I know that other parents have, and I am curious what their thoughts are on the subject.

@Cornemuse why are you wondering about so ma y different schools ?

not having attended boarding school. having listened to the bbc 3 part series on how boarding has evolved over the century and having family attending one, i don't know that there are any that would be "traditional" in the historical military disciplinarian approach thriving.
so i think they have all evolved and sometimes the changes happen quicker than the published ethos.
ss is very traditional looking however the headmistress is very pro active on women's issues. the girls sew up cloth period pads for developing world/low income donation. there is also an affiliation with a sports bra company developed by a former student. the girls are responsible for their own laundry and timekeeping while being very well supervised to get schoolwork completed.
courses studied include several languages and they appear to get excellent results neck to neck with benenden.
they have a psychologist on staff fully available during the day.
are these reflective of a traditional ethos or progressive?
i think all the boarding schools most likely have had to take on progressive measures to remain sustainable.
but things can differ from cohort to cohort, ie sewing could easily become "unpopular" no matter how available. in this case i believe the headmistress appears to have a strong influence on the schools views (sports) and realistically staffing changes could happen any time.

I just tried to think of the schools I have seen mentioned most often in the threads I've been reading here, as well as the schools I hear discussed most often my fellow mums I speak with in real life

I thought it would be interesting to have a thread in which posters gave their impression of many different boarding schools they know. It could be a useful resource for parents, no matter where they fell on the socio-political spectrum, to get a sense of where the schools are situated on that continuum.

I guess the answer to this is very much relative to one's own world-view. I would describe WA as "tolerant conservative". Compared to my daughters' prep school, controversial/divisive topics are probably taught less bombastically.